March Docs 2019

The Case Against Adnan Syed:

I really enjoyed the first episode of this series for two reasons: it focused on who Hae Min Lee was as a person and how her presence affected those around her, and it made artistic decisions that made me feel close to her. Using her journal entries alongside beautiful animations made me feel more connected to Hae than I did at any point while listening to Serial.

I thought this would continue through the series, but it didn’t. HBO dives right back into the confusion around what happened on January 13, 1999 and the days after. Right back into Sarah Koenig’s investigation of whether or not it was actually physically possible for Adnan to have committed this crime in the way Jay testified he did.

To me, it seems pretty clear that evidence of the events of the day shows that Jay was at the very least bending the truth in some areas. It’s terrifying to think that the fate of someone’s entire life could be determined by a scared teenager trying to wiggle his way out of a sticky situation with police, that someone could be convicted circumstantially, largely by one person’s testimony.

This documentary fights hard for Adnan, and it makes a good case. What we need to remind ourselves, though, is that Rabia is an executive producer for the documentary. Rabia obviously believes wholeheartedly in Adnan’s innocence, but the fact is, she has no idea what happened. She wasn’t there. She’s been fighting based on blind faith for twenty years. She has so much passion, and it makes me want to fight right along with her. But again, she has no idea what actually happened.

Adnan’s mother breaks my heart. So do his classmates. There are many, many victims in this situation, no matter who perpetrated the actual murder. Many have suffered and grieved for both the victim and the convicted. This is such a tragedy, and I wish we got to hear more from Hae’s family. I hope this new attention on the case doesn’t stir up psychological problems for them.

I have no opinion on who committed this crime. Both Don and Alonzo seem fishy as hell. Perhaps they didn’t show it in full context, but why did Alonzo have such an absurdly bad attitude in court? Of course she’s asking you about the day you found the body, you dingus.

I really enjoyed watching the series and would definitely recommend it to Serial fans, but I do wish that the last three episodes continued the artistry and the attention to the victim exhibited in the first.

#hbo #thecaseagainstadnansyed

The Disappearance of Madeline McCann:

This series left me feeling really depressed, and it wouldn’t have been right had I come away with any other emotion. I think it will be a fluke if this case is ever actually solved. I was surprised they were able to put together eight episodes for this series when the evidence is next to non-existent. Chances of solving this crime forensically were ruined just minutes after Madeline was discovered to be missing.

I know that the McCanns were opposed to the release of this documentary, and I’m not sure why. I came away from the series feeling heartbroken for them and furious at the media. I feel an empathetic sense of helplessness for Kate. They do talk about the McCanns as suspects, and if they don’t like that, I guess I understand their opposition. But I haven’t talked to anyone yet who has come away from the documentary thinking that the McCanns were somehow involved with Madeline’s disappearance. Most audiences will certainly have a problem with them leaving Madeline and her siblings alone in the room. I have a problem with it. But it doesn’t mean they killed her or had anything to do with it. They just made a mistake by not understanding the risk.

I also came away heartbroken for Julian Peribañez and the horrors he had to witness on the dark web in his search for Madeline. He didn’t find her, but he ended up helping a lot of kids. I feel so bad that he has to live with those images in his brain, especially when he’s raising a small child himself. I’m very grateful for what he did—some bad, bad, people were put away.

It’s impossible to know what happened to Madeline. My gut tells me it was a stranger snatch, and if that was the case, she was probably dead within the first three hours. If somehow she was abducted and sold to a family that cared for her, we would all rejoice, right? But it seems almost impossible. If she was just out there, living, someone surely would have seen and recognized her by now.

#Netflix #thedissapearanceofmadelinemccann #madelinemccann

The Inventor: Out for Blood in Silicon Valley:

This was a wild ride. I can’t even express how badly I want this technology to actually exist. Every single person on the planet feels the same way. This kind of early detection technology would be a freaking miracle.

But that’s just it—it would be a miracle. Elizabeth Holmes’s great failing was that she couldn’t face the fact that she couldn’t perform miracles.

My husband Kasey and I have discussed her moral culpability at length, and for some reason, it seems like I’m more sympathetic to her. I see a woman who couldn’t let go of a dream: a woman who wanted this to be real so badly she couldn’t even see that she was failing.

Kasey seems to think there’s something more malicious going on on her side, not just visionary denial. And he’s absolutely right, especially toward the end. Once her scientists told her it wasn’t working she should have changed and expanded her vision. What about machines in doctors’ offices that only perform a few tests, but could still be groundbreaking in terms of early detection? What about experimenting with larger amounts of blood than a drop, but still less than we have to give now? She was so hell-bent on making it the size of a printer that could fit in anyone’s home that she stood in the way of any potential good Theranos could have done. They had brilliant, visionary people on their team. What they needed was a less stubborn leader with a more open mind.

But we also discussed distasteful things she had done from the beginning. She aligned herself with some of the most disgraceful one-percenters on earth. I suppose that’s a sign of good business strategy, but it certainly isn’t a sign of a good moral compass.

I really hope other companies can continue to do similar work to what Theranos was doing simply so we can find a way out of the Quest Diagnostics model eventually. I don’t know what science is capable of, but I know we would all jump for joy if we could detect illness early in a less invasive way.

#theinventoroutforbloodinsiliconvalley #theinventor #theranos